So, I don't know if you all have heard about this yet, but there is a little girl in Brazil who was impregnated by a her stepfather, who is also suspected of sexually assaulting her sister:
The girl, aged nine, who lives in the north-eastern state of Pernambuco, became pregnant with twins.
It is alleged that she had been sexually assaulted over a number of years by her stepfather.
(article jump)
Police believe that the girl at the centre of the case had been sexually abused by her step-father since she was six years old.
The fact that she was pregnant with twins was only discovered after she was taken to hospital in Pernambuco complaining of stomach pains.
Her stepfather was arrested last week, allegedly as he tried to escape to another region of the country.
He is also suspected of abusing the girl's physically handicapped older sister who is now 14. (BBC article, read the rest here).
Disgusting.
The little girl ended up having an abortion, for which the medical professionals and the mother of the girl were excommunicated from the Catholic Church. But what of the rapist?
Jose Cardoso Sobrinho, the conservative regional archbishop for Pernambuco where the girl was rushed to hospital, has said that the man would not be thrown out of the Church, because although he had allegedly committed "a heinous crime", the Church took the view that "the abortion, the elimination of an innocent life, was more serious". (Emphasis mine, check the rest of the Independent article here).
So, let me get this straight, a potentially life-saving procedure is more evil than raping and impregnating a little girl? What does the Vatican have to say about this?
A Vatican cleric is defending a Brazilian archbishop's decision to excommunicate several doctors who performed an abortion last week on a nine-year-old girl who became pregnant with twins after alleged sexual abuse by her step-father.
"It is a sad case, but the real problem is that the twins conceived were two innocent persons, who had the right to live and could not be eliminated,'' Cardinal Giovanni Battista Re told the Italian daily La Stampa.
"Life must always be protected. The attack on the Brazilian church is unjustified," Re was quoted as saying. He also heads the Pontifical Commission for Latin America. (Emphasis mine, check out the rest of the CBC article here).
Life must always be protected, huh? What about the little girl? Does her life mean nothing?
What would it take for her piece-of-shit rapist to be excommunicated? If she were to carry the twins and die in the process? Would he be held accountable for all three lives?
Somehow I doubt it.
It's bloody clear that the Church is more concerned about controlling the bodies of women and children, than punishing those who violate those bodies.
Of course, this is nothing new with the Church. It is a vile and corrupt institution. To me it has no business being a beacon of morality, or imposing its morals on us. I see it as a blight on civilized society.
"The law of God is higher than any human laws," Archbishop Jose Cardoso Sobrinho said in an interview on Globo television. "When a human law is against the law of God, that law has no value." (CBC article)
Yes, I am a spiritual person. However, I don't seek to have the laws of my Deities enforced on those who do not follow Them. Unfortunately it cannot be said of the Catholic Church (as well as other religious institutions).
If we are going to live in a civilized society, then civil law should be based on logic and reason, not the laws of some God.
In a civilized society it is a disgusting thing to rape little girls, one that is more deplorable than having an abortion. Especially when it's to save a life.
In a civilized society the life of a person comes first.
Apparently the mother of the little girl brought her to a second doctor, after the first one said that her life would not be at risk to carry the twins to term.
I don't know about anyone else, but if my 80 lbs, 9-year-old daughter was carrying twins, and was told that her life wasn't in danger, I sure as hell would get a second opinion!
I'm not a medical doctor, but 80 lbs 9-year-old + twins does not = low risk pregnancy.
There are also rumours flying around on the web (which I have not seen in any media, never mind unbiased), that the little girl was forced to have the abortion. If that is the case, then to me that is equally repulsive as forcing her to go through with the pregnancy.
The real victims are the girls. My hope is that they will get a chance to heal, and to have happy, fulfilling lives.
Sláinte!
Laurel
2 comments:
I "excommunicated" myself from the RCC a long time ago and after reading this story I am even more happy that I did. I feel so sorry for the girl and her family. Maybe they can find another place for the spiritual home.
This is a good example of why church and state should always be seperate. My heart goes out to the victim and her family.
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